St. Mark’s Summer day camp is located on the campus of St. Mark’s School at 25 Marlboro Road, Southborough, Mass. Our campus is approximately five minutes from Route 9, with convenient access to the Mass Pike and Route 495.
Children in all St. Mark’s Summer programs travel by car to and from camp. Each family will be required to submit a list of authorized drivers to pick up their camper(s).
Daily snacks and lunch are provided for all participants. The food service professionals at St. Mark’s School provide a well-balanced, nutritious lunch. Each day, menu choices include an entrée, sides, drink and dietary restriction alternatives. We also provide a daily snack. If your child has a food allergy or special dietary needs please be in touch with us before the summer.
Our Division Directors work closely with our Director of Dining Services and families that have allergy or dietary needs as well as our health office to provide safe and appropriate meals for all participants. If your child has a food allergy or special dietary needs please be in touch with us before the summer. While we make every attempt to be a nut-safe program, St. Mark’s Summer cannot guarantee a 100 percent nut-free environment.
St. Mark’s Summer is located on the campus of St. Mark’s School in Southborough, Mass. A Meet and Greet will be scheduled in the spring before camp begins.
Though St. Mark’s is a residential high school during the school year, we invite visitors to put on their “camp goggles” as we tour our camp spaces and get a feel for St. Mark’s campus. See where your camper will check-in with their group each morning, eat lunch, play games, and engage in various activities.
We love hearing from families throughout the year! During the winter and spring, please feel free to reach out via phone or email during our regular business hours, Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
With multiple gyms, an indoor turf space, large gathering spaces, and a full-size auditorium, St. Mark’s Summer has ample indoor space. In the event of stormy or inclement weather, or excessive heat, alternate indoor activities may replace outdoor events. We are pleased to be able to offer dedicated indoor space for each group as well as areas for indoor specialty activities.
In the event of light rain, participants may still participate in some activities outdoors—raincoats are recommended. Children will not spend time outside in times of heavy rain or stormy weather.
The goal of the behavior management policy at St. Mark’s Summer is to provide every participant with a safe, nonthreatening environment which facilitates growth socially, physically, and emotionally within our programs. We recognize that all situations are unique and they will be treated as such. Behaviors which may warrant immediate suspension or removal from the program can include leaving the group (running away), endangering or purposefully hurting another participant or staff member, and the theft or destruction of property belonging to individuals or to St. Mark’s School or its partners.
Our summer team includes a mix of St. Mark’s School faculty and coaches, young adults, and local students who are all chosen for their skills, passions, depth of experience, strength of character, and embodiment of the St. Mark’s Summer spirit.
Our full-time leadership team spends the year planning and preparing for the summer, while our seasonal team convenes in the spring to complete their training and preparations. All St. Mark’s Summer staff are required to complete CORI and SORI background checks, fingerprinting, and additional licensing requirements based on their role. We dedicate a full week to in-person staff training before our programs begin, and all staff are certified in CPR and first aid. Throughout the summer, staff are in continuous partnership with the leadership team to further their own professional development and growth.
Yes. We accept electronic payments for deposits, tuitions, and add-ons through our online application platform. A deposit is required for each session and is applied to the final tuition. Deposits are refundable until March 1. Following March 1, a deposit may be applied to the updated family balance, but it will not be refunded. Families may choose to pay their balance in full at the time of registration or using our convenient installment plan. Please visit your CUB portal for detailed options.
Yes! A sibling discount of 5 percent is applied to eligible family enrollments when registrations are submitted at the same time.
Current St. Mark’s Summer staff are eligible for additional discounts. Please contact us for more information.
Our program is intentionally designed for a two-week experience – building connections, experiencing routine, and practicing new skills takes time and a shortened or missed portion of a session disrupts that meaningful learning.
Safety is also a high priority, and our systems rely on consistent and continuous attendance for those enrolled. Allowing for “come and go” attendance opens our systems to vulnerabilities we aren’t willing to risk.
Finally, due to the high demand for enrollment, we are not able to offer shortened or pro-rated sessions as it takes away a spot from someone else.
We are able to make prorating exceptions for school year extensions (snow days, etc) that overlap with the first days of camp during Session 1.
We see many of our camps and sessions reach capacity each summer, and some families do end up on a waitlist.
While we can’t always predict waitlist movement, we do typically see some movement in February, around the March 1st deposit deadline, and in the late spring when families confirm their summer plans.
If you are looking for camp to fill a childcare need, we recommend you research alternative plans in the event the waitlist does not move. If you’re able to wait and see, you may luck out – occasionally a space may become available and families ahead of you on the list may pass on the spot because they have already made other plans.
There is no cost to be on the waitlist. If a space becomes available, your camper will be enrolled, you will receive an email confirmation, and the charge will be added to your Household Account. Families will then have 72 hours to reach out and let us know if they no longer want the spot, at which time they will be unenrolled and refunded the charge.
The St. Mark’s Summer Health Office is staffed with trained health professionals (e.g. nurses, EMTs, nursing students, etc.) to support all participants. We also have a consulting relationship with a local pediatrician. If you have questions or concerns about a specific medical need, please reach out to us before the summer.
Any necessary protocols will be based on guidance provided by the local Board of Health, our consulting pediatrician, and camp health staff. Updated policies, as applicable, will be shared with enrolled families at the start of the summer.
The COVID-19 vaccine is not mandatory to attend camp at this time. If needed, up-to-date COVID-19 policies and procedures will be provided to enrolled families in the spring prior to the start of camp. These protocols will be based on the Massachusetts State Guidelines as well as the local Board of Health and our medical partners.
All campers participate in swimming lessons every day, taught in small groups by our certified swim instructors. Campers will be tested and placed in the appropriate level group at the beginning of their session. If the instructor deems a camper has progressed to meet all of the required skills they will be advanced to the next level.
Reluctant swimmers will be encouraged to put on their swimsuit and be at the pool, but we do not force entry into the water. Campers who are not able to participate due to medical or other reasons will still be at the pool area with their group during swim; alternative activities are not available.
Camper groups are assigned by grade—with children of the same or adjacent grades depending on enrollment. Groups include all genders, with separate changing options provided for swim times. Every group has multiple counselors assigned to it. Average group sizes range from 15-20 campers.
Our general policy is not to change camps or groups once the session has started. If it is important for your child to be (or not be) in the same group as a same-grade sibling or friend, please submit a request in writing to info@stmarkssummer.org at least two weeks before your session begins. We will not accept requests for more than one friend for each child.
Group assignments are a complex process that takes into account many variables, including legal staff:camper ratio requirements, age and gender balance, school or town, and more. Once groups are assigned, they appear on upwards of a dozen lists used by Division Directors, our health staff, counselors, extended day staff, pool staff/lifeguards, and in our emergency evacuation procedures. We are unable to make group changes after they have been assigned.
Enrichment campers participate in free swim on most days.
Enrichment campers spend the morning in their selected specialty—typically from 9:00 a.m. until lunchtime. Following lunch, Enrichment campers engage in a variety of traditional camp activities alongside campers in our Traditional Camp program. See a sample Enrichment daily schedule here.
Enrichment camps are led by a variety of instructors—St. Mark’s School coaches, faculty, professional teachers, long standing partners/third-party providers, and enthusiastic experts in their fields. St. Mark’s Summer vets and forms a relationship with any potential partners, and many of these connections are long-standing partnerships through their work with St. Mark’s School or the camp industry. Anyone working with St. Mark’s Summer during the summer completes the necessary background, CORI, SORI, and fingerprinting requirements. Learn more about our summer partners here.
Enrichment Camps are offered to a range of grades depending on the scope and sequence of the program. In general, Enrichment Camps are grouped by similar grade ranges as our Traditional Camp programs, though there are some exceptions.
Extended Day refers to our AM and PM Care programs, which offer families the flexibility to drop off early or pick up late. Campers in these programs participate in a variety of activities with counselors, including free choice crafts, sports, reading, board games, and more.
AM Care: 7:30 a.m. – 8:15 a.m. drop-off
PM Care: 4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. pick-up
Enrollment for Extended Day is by session, but we know things can pop up. Running late? Need to drop off early to make a meeting? Pending space availability, families may call our office during the summer to sign up for one-off enrollment in AM or PM care. Your CUB account will be charged the daily fee for each child enrolled.
Campers enrolled in PM Care will transition from the full camp day to their enrolled program, where a snack will be provided each day.
Breakfast is not provided at AM Care.
